Manhunt for suspect who allegedly set couple on fire in their Queens home
BELLEROSE, Queens (WABC) -- NYPD officials have identified the suspect who they say set an elderly Queens couple on fire in their home Monday, likely while searching for property to steal.
On Tuesday afternoon, authorities said they are looking for 42-year-old Jamel McGriff in connection to the crime. They say he was last seen on video earlier in the day pawning two cellphones in the Bronx.
Police said he should be considered armed and dangerous and should not be approached.
It all unfolded when officials responded to a fire at a home on 254th Street before 3:30 p.m. where they found a 76-year-old man and a 77-year-old woman dead.
They have since been identified as Frank and Maureen Olton. According to police, both victims were stabbed before the house went up in flames.
The woman was found lying on the first floor. Accelerant appeared to have been poured on her body, starting the fire.
The man was found in the basement where he was tied with bungee cords to a column supporting the house. He was also set on fire but that fire appears to have extinguished itself.
Video of the suspect was recovered from neighbors' security cameras.
NYPD officers said Tuesday that McGriff has an extensive criminal record stretching 30 years and was released from prison in 2023.
He was out on parole after serving 16 years for robbery. He violated his parole by failing to register as a Level 3 sex offender, the highest risk repeat offender, according to New York State's offender registry. He is also wanted in connection with two recent robberies in Manhattan.
Detectives believe McGriff spent five hours in the victims' home, likely searching for property to steal before setting it ablaze.
He exited the home carrying two bags.
Neighbors reported an unknown man knocking on doors, asking to charge a cellphone. At least one neighbor said they turned the man away before he approached the victims' house.
Surveillance video recovered by detectives shows the suspect knocking on the back door, and the 76-year-old victim opening it and letting him in, at around 10:15 a.m. Monday.
That same surveillance video shows the suspect leaving the home at 3:08 p.m., shortly before the house went up in flames.
Neighbors called the victim's son, an FDNY paramedic who was off duty at the time of the fire, who rushed home to discover his parents dead.
The suspect was described as around 30 to 40 years of age with a medium build. He was last seen wearing a black hat, a black jacket, blue jeans, and black sneakers.
Police said there is no known connection between McGriff and the victims, beyond this "chance encounter," at this time.
That horrific chance encounter has shaken the quiet neighborhood.
"It's one of the most disgusting things I've ever heard of," said neighbor Mike Lavore. "That a crime like this could be committed in this area."
"I'm telling my boys now to be vigilant, and it's heartbreaking. You know, shocking," said a neighbor named Andrea.
Neighbors remembered the victims as being sweet, normal, down to earth people.
"The nicest neighbors you can ever ask for... they came out when the essential workers at 7 o'clock you know during COVID, they were out with us and he would always wave to us, just this past weekend, he would wave to us, it's sad, it's really sad, because good neighbors are hard to come by," said neighbor John Ruiz.
Residents of the normally quiet and safe neighborhood said their sense of security has been shattered.
"It's one of the most disgusting things I've ever heard of, that a crime like this could be committed in this area," neighbor Mike Lavore said.
Neighbors, on Tuesday night, said they will feel a lot safer when officers apprehend the suspect.
"Everyone startled, everyone's scared," said neighbor Amalia Beague. "They don't even want to step outside. They don't feel safe at all."
The NYPD said McGriff's MO is to go door to door asking for help, so residents are warned not to let him inside.
Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
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